In general, an electronic component is provided with an external electrode to be connected with other circuit elements. Due to recent demands for miniaturization of components, it is also required that this external electrode be as thin as possible. However, in the prior art, the external electrode is formed by applying a conductive paste on a ceramic element assembly and baking the conductive paste, and the thickness of the external electrode thus obtained is large and, in addition, often non-uniform. In response to such a problem, Patent Document 1 discloses that a thin and uniform external electrode can be formed by using a method of forming an external electrode by plating, instead of a conventional method of baking a conductive paste to form an external electrode.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-327983